Great Rolls, Forgotten Wine List
Downtown · New Haven · Japanese / Sushi · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 3, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Kamakura Sushi’s wine list and gave it The Lazy List — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
The wine list at Kamakura Sushi is an afterthought — a few lines wedged into a menu that really wants you to order sake or a Sapporo. There's nothing wrong with that priority, but if you came hoping to find something interesting in a glass, you're going to be disappointed fast. This is a sushi spot, not a wine bar, and the list makes no effort to pretend otherwise.
We're talking four to six wines, all of them generic California house pours with no producer names worth mentioning. There's a House Chardonnay, a House Cabernet Sauvignon, and a small cluster of similarly anonymous bottles ranging from $28 to $45. No sake-adjacent wine picks, no crisp Grüner or Muscadet that might actually flatter the fish — just bulk California defaults that could've come off any restaurant supply shelf. The regional focus here is sake and beer, which is honestly the right call, but it leaves wine drinkers with zero interesting options.
You get roughly four to six by-the-glass options, priced between $7 and $10 — which sounds affordable until you realize you're paying per-glass prices that outpace what a full bottle of the same bulk wine costs at retail. The rotation doesn't rotate. What's there today was probably there six months ago and will be there six months from now.
House Chardonnay — $8/glass
At $8 it's the cheapest entry point on the list, and if you're having a light roll or sashimi and just want something cold and white, it won't actively hurt you. Relative to the rest of the list, it's the least bad option — which is faint praise but the honest truth here.
House Cabernet Sauvignon
Nobody orders Cab at a sushi restaurant, and for good reason — it's a clumsy match for delicate fish. But if you're the person who ordered the beef teriyaki or a heavier roll with plenty of sauce, this is the only red on the list and it does the job without embarrassing itself.
House Cabernet Sauvignon
At $8 a glass with a retail comparable sitting around $9 for the whole bottle, you're paying a 267% markup on something that was never meant to be taken seriously. Order the sake. Seriously. Order the sake.
House Chardonnay + Kamakura Roll
The Chardonnay is neutral enough that it won't fight the specialty roll's flavors — it won't enhance them either, but at least you won't cringe. Think of it as a palate-neutral placeholder while you enjoy the actual reason you came here.
The Bottom Line
Kamakura Sushi is a solid neighborhood sushi spot and you should absolutely go — just order sake, beer, or a soft drink and leave the wine list alone. The wine program exists in name only, and no amount of goodwill toward the kitchen changes that.
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Small but Thoughtful
Steep
Varietal Specific
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Set & Forget
Proper
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Solid Range
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Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Viñas is punching well above its weight class for a downtown wine bar, and the Chilean-focused list is genuinely worth your attention. If you care about South American wine at all, this is the most interesting pour in New Haven right now.
Surprising Depth
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Active Program
Acceptable
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Solid Range
Steep
Basic Stemmed
Knowledgeable & Friendly
Occasional
Proper
Downtown / Yale · New Haven · New American Hotel Restaurant
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Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Nichinan's wine list is short but earns its keep — the presence of Pieropan, Grüner Veltliner, and Henri Bourgeois Sancerre tells you someone on staff understands that sushi and Chardonnay is not the only answer. Markups are fair across the board, and the by-the-glass selection is wide enough to keep the table happy without forcing a bottle. If you're in Portsmouth and want something better than the default wine-at-a-sushi-restaurant experience, this delivers.
Small but Thoughtful
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
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Tona earns its Wild Card badge not because the wine program is remarkable on its own, but because Tuesday half-price wine night at one of Utah's most decorated sushi spots is a genuinely great deal hiding in plain sight. Come for the sushi, stay for the midweek special — just don't come expecting a list that surprises you.
Plays It Safe
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Willing but Green
Occasional
Acceptable
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Hayashi's wine list is exactly what it needs to be for a neighborhood sushi spot — fair prices, nothing weird, nothing special. Grab the Kung Fu Girl Riesling and call it a night.
Crowd Pleasers
Fair
Basic Stemmed
Rotating Cast
Set & Forget
Acceptable
One wine list review, one adventure pick, one quick tip, and a personal note. Every week. Under 500 words.
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